She was working so hard.... So dedicated to her kids.... Working 50+ hours a week, to provide for her family. Emotionally and physically, Sheri was a maxed-out mom.

But then her own mother was diagnosed with a grave illness; one that required serious care. Nobody else in the family was in a position to step up and Sheri couldn’t let her mother suffer alone. So she made the sacrifice and added “caregiver” to her list of responsibilities – but it was too much...

“I started drinking a bit to help with the stress,” Sheri remembers. “As time went on, I was drinking every day.”

She had no idea that she was extremely sensitive to alcohol. It wasn’t long at all before she was totally trapped – a tragic, fully addicted alcoholic. She couldn’t function at work. She lost her job. Broke and helpless, she lost her home.

She was so far gone, – so wracked by the shame of her failure – she abandoned her family, even abandoned her mother. That Mother’s Day was painfully bitter. Sheri began drinking even more, trying to numb the agony of her guilt.

“I was couch-surfing, homeless, drinking, depressed,” Sheri says. “I was in a rut that I couldn’t get out of. Then I got a call that my mom had taken a turn for the worse. Within a couple days, she was gone. I didn’t have the time to tell her that I was sorry and explain to her why I did what I did. Not talking to my mom – doing what I did – the guilt and the shame really set in – and the drinking got worse.”

If you had known Sheri in those days ... a haggard homeless woman, hollowed out by despair ... you would never recognize her as the beautiful, successful woman she had been.

But Sheri’s story doesn’t end there, in the gutter.

Turn the page, and you’ll find a new chapter – set in a much more familiar place: Your place. You heard about the plight of people here in the Tucson area, and your heart answered with compassion. You supported Gospel Rescue Mission with a gift of love. And that beautiful act of generosity connected with Sheri.

She saw our TV spot, offering Christ-centered recovery – and in that moment, she knew: It was time. It was past time. She had to get help. And thanks to you, here it was.

You enabled God’s love to flow into Sheri’s life in a whole new way ... and she was profoundly transformed. “The minute I walked through the doors I surrendered everything to Him,” says Sheri. “I said, ‘I am yours to do with what you will. I can’t do this anymore.’ And I’ve never turned back.”

Today, Sheri has been sober for more than a year. With the dedicated support of counselors at staff here at Gospel Rescue Mission – their hard work fueled by your giving – Sheri graduated from our Christian recovery services in February.

And by God’s grace, Sheri’s family is coming back together. “My priority now is to repair the relationship with my kids,” she says. “When I finally got the nerve to call them, they were happy that I was here. They told me, ‘We love you, we’re very proud of you – keep going, you’re almost there.’”

This Mother’s Day is going to be a wonderful day of celebration. Of redemption. Of the power of God’s love.

Sheri has been restored. Thank God. And thank you.

I wish that Sheri were the last mother who will ever need our help, but she isn’t. Others are turning to us, hoping against hope that we can help. Some are struggling with addiction. Some are homeless. Some are fleeing domestic violence and other forms of abuse.

Some are simply desperate to feed their children. Our meals are critically important to them. While they work to get back on their feet, they urgently need basic nutrition, consistent meals, for themselves and their little ones. Your generous support for Gospel Rescue Mission is keeping them alive.

So I am turning to you with a deep-down hope that you’ll be able to help today. We need you to stand with us, for the sake of children, families, and individuals in terrible need right here in Tucson.

Please give a “Mother’s Day gift” right now, to connect another mom like Sheri to God’s life-transforming love and power. Thank you in advance for whatever you can do today. God bless you!

Yours in Christ,

Roy E. Tullgren III Executive Director

P.S. “I’ve got two beautiful grandkids,” Sheri says, “and I want to be a real grandma to them.” Your generosity and compassion will multiply generation after generation in this family! But others need help right away. I hope to hear from you quickly. Thank you again!